NASHVILLE – Midstate players get up for midstate games. MTSU and Vanderbilt baseball coaches have accepted that fact heading into Tuesday night's game.

"We try to approach it like any other midweek game, but we know it's really not. It's Vandy," said MTSU coach Jim McGuire, whose squad will play at No. 8 Vanderbilt at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Both clubs carry a first-place standing in some fashion from their weekend conference games. The Blue Raiders sit atop Conference USA, while the Commodores are tied with Missouri for first place in the SEC Eastern Division. But this midstate midweek matchup still means something.

MTSU (23-16, 14-4 C-USA), riding a season-best six-game winning streak, has a 1-8 non-conference record, all against in-state teams, after beating Tennessee last week. Its midweek failures paint a stark contrast to its C-USA weekend success.

Vanderbilt (29-12, 12-6 SEC) recently fell from its No. 1 ranking by winning only two of its past eight games, including back-to-back midweek upset losses to midstate foes Lipscomb and Belmont.

"This game has a lot of significance from a momentum standpoint," Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin said. "We have come up short against two local teams the last two weeks, and that has set the tone for us going into the weekend. I am not saying every weekday game does that, but it certainly can.

"(MTSU) is another good local team, and so it's important for us that we play well for our own psyche and confidence."

The pitching matchup will have a midstate flavor on one side, as MTSU junior righthander Garrett Ring (1-1), a former Mt. Pleasant standout, will face Vanderbilt lefty Ryan Johnson (3-0). Neither pitched in Vanderbilt's 12-7 comeback win at MTSU on March 24.

Vanderbilt, the defending national champion, has seen its RPI drop to 25 after losing two straight SEC series. MTSU's RPI has climbed to 64, but a win over the Commodores could boost the Blue Raiders' hopes of getting into the NCAA Regional at-large picture.

"This could be a huge game for us if we win, but we know we have a tall task ahead of us and we know we've still got a long way to go before (at-large consideration) becomes realistic," McGuire said. "We see this as an opportunity to go out and do something – not just a midweek win, but a win that could really, really help our status."